


Rugrat

by angelskuuipo



Series: Possibilities 'verse [9]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, GFY, Gen, Gift Fic, Kid Fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-23
Updated: 2015-09-23
Packaged: 2018-04-23 01:54:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,531
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4858712
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/angelskuuipo/pseuds/angelskuuipo
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>James gets a surprise visitor.  Later, he and Darcy make a tentative decision about their future.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Rugrat

**Author's Note:**

  * For [shanachie](https://archiveofourown.org/users/shanachie/gifts).



> Disclaimer: Recognizable characters are not mine; never have been, never will be…damn it. The story and all original characters, however, are. Please do not repost without my permission.
> 
> Prompt: James out of his element
> 
> Written as a Happy Belated Birthday gift for the lovely and talented Shanachie. This is my second try at this prompt. The first attempt was actually a de-aged Avengers story that tried to get out of hand. Maybe I’ll re-visit that one someday. ;) I do hope you like this, honey! This is part of my Possibilities ‘Verse and won’t make a lot of sense if you haven’t read the other stories. Big thanks to Elisabeth for the beta.
> 
> Written: September 22, 2015  
> Word Count: 1,530

~*~*~*~*~*~

Today? 

Not his best day ever. 

And, coming from him that was saying something.

James kinda prided himself on being ready for anything. But he wasn’t prepared for this.

“Hello,” he said cautiously to the tiny human standing in his kitchen doorway. He very carefully put the knife he’d reflexively grabbed onto the counter and took a deliberate step away.

He’d left the door open for Darcy and Smudge. He wasn’t expecting this, especially in the tower.

The child was maybe, _maybe_ three years old. He couldn’t tell for certain, but he thought it was a little boy. He had short, strawberry blonde hair that stuck out in all directions, like a dandelion puff, bright blue eyes, and a smattering of freckles across his nose; he was wearing green pajamas and holding a ratty blanket tucked under one arm while sucking on his thumb.

Kind of adorable, really.

The kid stared at him for another minute before taking his thumb out of his mouth and pointing at the counter. “Nana.”

James blinked and followed the little finger. Yep, those were bananas.

He looked over to the corner where the security camera was. “JARVIS?”

If the AI could sound beleaguered, that’s how James would categorize his friend’s voice. “I do apologize, sir. My attention was elsewhere. I believe that is Martin Trevelyan, Ms. Potts’s nephew. Her sister and children are visiting. It would seem that the little one slipped away from the nanny and went exploring. I’ve contacted Ms. Potts. She and her sister were out to brunch and they should be returning shortly.” JARVIS hesitated before said, “I do believe the young sir would be much better off with you than the nanny. The woman is, quite frankly, useless. She hasn’t even noticed the child is missing. His older sister is ensconced on the couch watching cartoons and dripping milk onto Ms. Potts’s upholstery.”

James winced and nodded. “Okay then. Thank you, J. Do you happen to know if Martin can have a banana?”

“Nana,” Martin repeated with a little bounce.

“I am not aware of any allergies.”

“Thank you, JARVIS. I’ll do my best. Uh, if Darcy’s around could you have her come by?”

“Certainly, sir. And, thank you.”

James eyed the little boy for a moment and then shrugged. What the hell. He had some memories of helping his ma take care of Rebecca, but they were hazy. He grabbed a banana and peeled it before slicing it into bite-sized chunks. He put them on a paper plate and looked down at Martin. There was no way the kid could sit at the table. It wasn’t like he had a high chair or booster seat handy.

Coffee table it was, then. Snagging a paper towel, he said, “Come on, kid. You can eat in the living room. Just try not to make too much of a mess, all right?”

Martin followed him into the living room and plopped down at the coffee table when James put the plate down. He picked up a piece of banana, shoved into his mouth, and immediately picked up another one.

“Huh uh, chew and swallow what you’ve got in your mouth first,” James admonished. He was more than a little surprised when Martin did as he was told.

Martin got halfway through before he had enough. James felt no guilt at all about finishing off the rest. They stared at each other after that and he had no idea what to do.

Eventually, Martin got up and toddled over to him. He patted James’s metal arm and gave him a toothy smile. “Piddy.”

James’s eyebrows hit his hairline. His arm had been called a lot of things, but pretty wasn’t one of them. “Sure, kid, if you say so.” He looked around for something they could do besides watch TV and lit on the sketchbook and bag of art supplies he’d just recently restocked. He had crayons now, because Darcy was an enabling enabler who enabled.

“You want to color?”

Martin grinned at him again and bounced on his toes, so James took that for a yes.

He got the pad and the bag and brought them over to the coffee table. He sat down next to Martin and pulled out his supplies, snorting when he brought out the _My Little Pony_ coloring book that he hadn’t realized Darcy had slipped into the pile.

Opening up the box of crayons, he laid them down in easy reach and turned to the first picture of the book. “Here, kid. Go wild.”

Martin pulled a bright sky blue crayon from the box and attacked the picture with gusto. No coloring inside the lines for that kid.

James had just started to sketch a memory of Smudge sleeping when the dog and Darcy entered the apartment.

“Hey, babe,” Darcy said as she came around the corner. “JARVIS said you needed me? Oh, hello.”

Martin wasn’t paying any attention to her. His gaze was riveted on Smudge who was standing almost nose to nose with the little boy. Smudge’s tail was going so fast that James could feel the breeze, but he kept an eye on Martin. The little boy’s lip was quivering, but before he could do more than draw a breath, Smudge licked him from chin to forehead.

Martin’s face screwed up and then he blinked at Smudge. There was another beat of silence and then Martin threw his head back and laughed. It was a full-on belly laugh; the kind that ended with hiccups. And yep, there he went. For her part, Smudge just lay down nearby and watched the tiny human.

James got up and kissed Darcy. She followed him into the kitchen as he got a glass of water for Martin. “What in the world?”

James shrugged. “It’s Pepper’s nephew. He escaped from the nanny and found his way here. JARVIS asked me to watch him until they get back from brunch.”

Her eyebrows climbed. “And you’re okay with that?”

“I guess. If someone who gets paid to watch him can’t do her job then it’s better he be with someone who pays attention.” He gave her a smirk. “Hope you don’t mind, but I let him have first crack at your coloring book.”

Darcy stuck her tongue out at him. “Shut up. Not all of us were blessed with drawing talent. Some of us need structure.”

She moved past him to get a paper towel and wet it down. When he looked at her, she said, “To clean off Smudge’s greeting.”

He nodded and they went back into the living room. Martin had one had buried in Smudge’s coat and he was coloring with the other. Darcy knelt next to them.

“Hey, little dude. Mind if I wash your face?”

He glanced at her and then turned to look at her fully. “Piddy,” he mumbled, blushing a little. Then he tilted his face up and let Darcy wipe him off.

She looked at James, a little bewildered. He was hiding a grin behind his hand. “He thinks you’re pretty,” he managed after a minute or so. “Kid’s got good taste.”

Darcy bit her lip and looked away, a faint blush of her own flushing her cheeks.

James retook his seat on the floor and the three of them settled into companionable silence as James and Martin drew and colored and Darcy worked on her tablet.

Martin clapped his hands loudly when he finished his coloring project and held up proudly for James to see.

James tilted his head and pursed his lips. “Looks good, kid.”

Martin giggled and showed it to Darcy. She blinked at the chaotic swirls of color a few times before she said diplomatically, “Pinkie Pie has never looked so colorful.”

James snorted and Darcy stuck her tongue out at him again. Martin yawned and leaned against James’s side. James froze for a moment before he shifted Martin into a more comfortable position and just stared down at him. The kid was asleep already like it was his job.

“You’re good with him,” Darcy murmured softly.

“It’s only been an hour,” James muttered.

“Still, can you imagine Tony with him?”

James winced. “Point.”

“You’ll make a good dad someday,” she said softly, mostly to herself, but James heard her.

His heart stuttered and his brain tripped a couple of times. He could clearly picture Darcy, her belly round with his child, looking at him with the same half-smile she was currently wearing as she looked at the two of them. And he wanted that. He wanted that with a fierceness he wasn’t previously aware he was capable of.

“Maybe someday we’ll find out,” he said hoarsely.

Darcy stilled and it took a few moments for her to meet his eyes. This was a conversation he didn’t think he’d ever have and it probably wasn’t the right time, not with Pepper due to show up any minute, but the idea was out there. And he liked it. He really, really liked it.

“Maybe we will,” she said hesitantly.

James swallowed. Possibilities. So many possibilities. 

Okay, so he’d been wrong before. This wasn’t such a bad day after all.

-30-


End file.
